Topic: Nintendo Scores Big at the AIAS Awards

[WindyMan]

You already know that, of course, but Nintendo wants to go on and make it all official.

Nintendo Sweeps Major Awards Ceremony

Seven Top Awards; Wins Demonstrate Innovation Still Captures Gamers' Hearts

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 28, 2003-- In a city known for high stakes wins, Nintendo walked away with seven major coveted awards for superior achievement in the multi-billion dollar video game entertainment business at the 2003 Interactive Achievement Awards at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.  The gala ceremony, held by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS), is attended by the industry's elite and is the one annual event where creators are recognized for their works of art and voted on by their peers.  

Despite the stiff competition -- many of them top-selling games -- it was clear by the votes that Nintendo's continued ability to innovate and create new ways of experiencing gaming is still held in the highest regard.  

Nintendo's Animal Crossing(TM) for the Nintendo GameCube(TM), earned three awards, including: 'Innovation in Console Gaming;' 'Console RPG Game of the Year;' and 'Outstanding Achievement in Game Design.' In addition, AIAS honored Metroid® Prime, also for Nintendo GameCube, in the 'First Person Action Game of the Year' category. Mario Party® 4 a hysterical multi-player game, won 'Family Game of the Year,' and Eternal Darkness(TM): Sanity's Requiem, the first true psychological thriller, received the 'Outstanding Achievement in Character or Story' award. In the portable category, Metroid Fusion blasted its way to 'Handheld Game of the Year.'  

"As an artist, the only way I know how to make a great game is to go by my intuition and heart," explains Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, the world's renowned video game master and senior managing director of all software for the company. "To win over and over in just one evening stunned our whole team. We're overwhelmed."  

Nintendo takes extra pride in the recognition of its second-party development partners, Retro Studios of Austin, Texas, developer of Metroid Prime; and Silicon Knights of Ontario, Canada, developer of Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem. Both titles are exclusive to Nintendo GameCube and earned critical acclaim in a variety of print and online publications during 2002.

Nintendo took home seven total awards out of its 26 total nominations. It was beaten only by Electronic Arts, who took 13 of its 30 nominations, including the 2002 Game of the Year Award, Battlefield 1942 for the PC.